Bulkhead for torpedoes



W. DIETER.

BULKHEAD FOR TOBPEDOES. APPLICATION FILED APR.2, 1919.

Patented Mar. 30, 1920.

INVENTOR mum Rum/L By Azzomew, I @fnoam, Q /L dr 1 heads of plate metal has been recognized,

-U'NITED s'r-Arns rnrnncr orr cn.

' WILLIAM mnrnn, or BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

- BULKHEAD FOR ronrnnons.

, Patented Mar. 30,1920.

Application flledApril 2, 1919. Serial No. 286,870.

engine and takes the entire driving thrust of the propellers, which it communicates from the gear frame to the torpedo shell. Heretofore this bulkhead has been made of cast bronze, and has necessarily been domeshaped to resist the preponderant pressure on the water compartment side; much difficulty has been experienced inav'oiding defects in the castings and 'securing castings of the requisite strength.

The present invention provides a bulkhead made of steel plate instead of cast metal- While the desirability of making such bulkyet the 'difiiculties heretofore encountered have proved insuperable; the principal problem has been to get the requisite strength without adding materially to the weight of the torpedo structure. Any material add1- tion to the weight would prohibitively disturb the buoyancy of the torpedo. Heretofore no construction has been devised which would afford the requisite strength without prohibitive weight.-

The bulkhead provided by the present 1nvention is illustrated in its preferred form in the accompanying drawings, wherein,

Figure 1 is an elevation of the bulkhead viewed from the rear side thereof;-

Fig. 2 is a vertical mid-section in the plane of the line 2-2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line 3-3 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a plan view, inverted;

Fig. 5 is a horizontal mid-section on the line 55 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 6 is a horizontal section on the line 66 in Fig. 1.

The bulkhead is made of a circular plate A, of steel, certain portions of which are plane, while other portions are pressed; into concave-convex form, as will be descrlbed;

. tending and a reinforcing plate or truss B secured to the plate A by welded rivets or bosses C C.

The plate A is subjected to pressure between'dies to form a convex forward projection or hood D, a rearward depression E, and a rearward concavo-cqmvexdepres sionF. The purpose of the hood D is to admit the turbine and afford a base for the attachment of the turbine nozzle. The pur- .pose of the depression E is to afford space on the forward side for attaching the nozzle and making the necessary connections. The depression F is required in order to afford room for the superheater.

The hood D is in plan bounded by the arc of a circle (coincident with the center of rotation of the turbine), as shown in Fig. 4:.

Its under side G is' made substantially flatand horizontal in order to afford a base for the attachment of the nozzle. To give this part the requisite strength it is thickened by welding on a piece. of the requisite'thickness. Through this fiat portion an arcshaped slot H is made for receiving the nozzle proper, and on opposite sides of this slot holes are drilled and tapped for receiving the screws by which the nozzle flange is fastened.

The four rivets or bosses C C coincide in location with the four studs which support the frame of the gearing group through which the turbine drives, at reduced speed, the propeller shafts. studs the driving thrust due to the propulsion of the torpedo is transmitted to the bulkhead and thence to the hull of the torpedo. To resist this driving strain the cast metal bulkhead heretofore employed. has been formed with strengthening ribs forming trusses for imparting the necessary rigidity to the bulkhead. According to the present construction, the steel plate bulkhead is strenhened or reinforced by means of the part This is formed of a piece of steel plate bent up as indicated, its flanges I I forming a horizontal truss ex nearly diametrically across the bulkhead, while its end flanges J J constitute vertical trusses near the ri ht and left" sides of the bulkhead. It is fastened against the aft face of the plate A at any suitable number of points, preferably at the bosses C C. For this purpose the preferable mode of fastening is to form coinciding holes in the plates A and B and in- Through these four horizontally and vertically; also, the

troduce solid studs or rivets K K, which are then welded in place, after which they are bored through and faced down to the cross-section shown in Fig. 3, so that they form flanged bushings or bosses for the attachment of the studs of the gearing frame.

It will be seen that the truss flanges I J stiffen the plates as nearly as practicable in lines between the respective bosses both late B is extended beyond the bosses at la L nearl to the outer rim portion of the plate A. T is outer rim portion is drilled through at M M with the re uisite holes for receiving the screws by W ich the respective sections of the torpedo body or hull are united with the bulkhead fastened between them, in the well-known manner.

For the attachment of the reducing valve, a stud or boss P is welded in place, being preferably applied in coinciding holes in the two plates. The hole (2 in the two plates is provided for admitting the pipe by which high pressure air is carried to the steering mechanism.

The improved construction herein described provides a bulkhead havin the requisite strength and lightness, so t at it is fully capable of carrying the strains imposed upon it, and does not add to the weight of the torpedo. At the same time, it has very important advantages over the cast bronze bulkhead heretofore used, in that it is wholly free from blow-holes and concealed flaws resulting from the casting operation, so that the risk of its way through structural weakness is elimnated. The cost of the bulkhead is also reduced.

The construction may be varied or modified without departing from the invention, the novel features of which are set forth in the claims.

I claim as my invention 1. A torpedo bulkhead consisting of a circular steel plate having portions pressed into concavo-convex form, and a flanged stifiening plate and perforated .bosses welded into coinciding holes in said plates, and adapted to receive the attaching studs of the propelling mechanism.

2. A torpedo bulkhead consisting of a circular steel plate and a flanged stifi'ening plate formed with bosses located for the attachment of the studs of the turbine mechanism, the stiffening plate having extensions radiating from said bosses to transmit the thrust of said turbine to the marginal portion of the bulkhead, and thus to the shell of the tor edo.

'3. A torpedo bulk ead consisting of a circular steel plate and a stifl'enin plate secured thereto, formed with bosses %ocated for the attachment of the studs of the turbine mechanism, the stiffening plate having horizontal flanges extending longitudinally thereof and having near opposite ends vertical flanges bridging between said bosses.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto signed my name.

' WILLIAM DIETER. 

